GALESBURG — A judge set bond at $250,000 Monday for a volunteer Williamsfield firefighter charged with arson.

Blake T. Walsh, 24, is charged in Knox County with five counts of arson and criminal damage to property. He is accused of a series of garbage container and brush fires throughout the region dating back to November. The arson charges are Class 2 felonies, which means Walsh could face up to seven years in prison if convicted.

Walsh was arrested April 16 for allegedly starting a fire in a large garbage container behind The Shoe Department on Volunteer Drive.

Officers responded to calls of smoke coming from the container behind the store, the third in a series of reports over the past few weeks. Witnesses reported seeing Walsh near the container when the fire is said to have broken out, although some reports indicate Walsh was trying to put it out.

As the result of investigations between the Knox County Sheriff’s Office and Galesburg and Williamsfield fire departments, Walsh was accused of setting fire to more than 20 hay bales in a series of incidents between November 2013 and April this year.